The Voice - Student Newspaper

Medical marijuana legalized

Recently, Arizona became the 15th state to legalize the use of medicinal marijuana with the passing of Proposition 203.

Just in case you don't know, Prop 203 is a bill which was proposed to legalize marijuana for medical purposes in the state of Arizona.

The state needed at least 153,000 valid signatures for the proposition to actually make it on the ballot. The bill was turned in with an immense amount of 252,000 signatures on it. Voters placed their ballots and pushed the bill through by a very close call.

Arizona will now be made to set up marijuana dispensaries for patients who are given a prescription, as well as administering I.D. cards to those who qualify.

The amount of marijuana one can obtain at a time is limited to 2.5 ounces every two weeks.

Of course, there are stipulations involved. Patients are unable to use marijuana in a public place, in the workplace or on school grounds. Also, driving while under the infl uence of medical marijuana is strictly prohibited.

Now depending on who you speak to, many different opinions are given on the matter. If you were to take a survey among college students, you'd probably get a lot more thumbs up on the legalization than if you surveyed middle-aged or older citizens.

Many say that marijuana is an exceptional alternative to pain pills, which often have negative side effects.

One man in favor of the bill explained how his friend was dying of cancer, and was unable to keep his pain meds down. He was given medical marijuana, which became the only thing that was able to decrease his pain in his last few months of life. Many people who smoke marijuana aren't using it for recreational purposes.

Some people have legitimate pain and diseases that are helped greatly by the use of marijuana. Although they are using it innocently, they are at a constant risk of arrest and prosecution for simply wanting to relieve their pain.

On the other hand, many claim there are more negatives than positives to making medicinal marijuana legal. Some say that long-term use of marijuana can lead to signifi cant damage of short- term memory. Also, arguments have surfaced that if we legalize marijuana, people will then push for other drugs such as heroin and cocaine to be legalized, as well as the fact that people are not known to make the best choices, and may drive while under the infl uence.

States that have already put medicinal marijuana into effect report that it's diffi cult to regulate due to the amount of illegitimate vendors and fake I.D. cards.